Theodore sawders



(No Model.)

T. SAUNDERS. GAR A XLE-LUBRIGATOR.

No. 403,448. Patented May14, 1889.

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NITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

THEODORE SAUNDERS, OF DANBURY, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR TO THE SAUNDERS CARAXLE LUBRIOATOR COMPANY, OF SAME PLACE.

CAR-AXLE Lu BRICATOR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 403,448, dated May 14,1889.

Application filed January 10, 1889. Serial No, 296,014. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern-.-

Be it known that I, THEODORE SAUNDERS, of Danbury, in the county ofFair-field and State of Connecticut, have invented certain new anduseful Improvements in Car-Axle Lubricators; and I do hereby declarethat the following specification, taken in connection with the drawingsfurnished and forming a part of the same, is a clear, true, and completedescription of my invention.

My said improvements relate to that particular variety of car-axlelubricators which were devised by me and disclosed in my application forLetters Patent filed June 23, 1888, Serial No. 277,961. Thecharacteristic feature of said lubricators is a flexible pad providedwith pendent wicks and suspended between side supports, which maintainsaid pad in proper contact with the under side of an axle. As heretoforeconstructed by me, said side supports have had their bearings upon thebottom of an axle-box; but I have now so devised said supports that theyare in substance spring brackets or arms projecting from a suitablebase, which is adapted to be secured to or mounted upon the front end ofan axlebox below its door or opening, so that the lubricator may bereadily applied to and removed from an axle-box, and also so that theproper relations between the pad and the journal. may be readily securedand maintained by specially simple modes of adjustment. In my saidlubricators as formerly constructed the flexible pads were connected attheir ends throughout their length directly with the side supports; butnow I have pivoted the pad centrally at its ends to side sup ports,whichaffords a desirable self-adjusting capacity of the pad with relation tothe longitudinal surface of the journal.

Prior car-axle lubricators have contained supporting devices for pads orwicks or cotton waste, which have embodied spring-actuated framescarrying other frames pivoted thereto, and said other frames have eitherdirectly carried the absorbent material or rollers or blocks betweenwhich and the axlejournal the absorbent material was tightly interposed. None of these prior devices known to me is capable of use withsuspended pads in accordance with my invention, first, be-

cause in each instance said prior devices pinch or compress theabsorbent material between the axle-journal and the underlyingsupporting surfaces a mode of operation which I have specially sought toavoid; secondly, because in none of said prior devices having parallelsupports for the pad are said supports separated by a space wider thanthe diameter of an axle-journal, and hence said supports are incapableof being connected with the ends of a pad and of holding the pad in asuspended position between them and in light contact with the entireunder side of a journal; thirdly, because in such of said prior devicesas have arms to which said parallel pad supports are pivoted theparallel supports are coupled together to form a rigid frame, and thearms to which said frame is pivoted are connected together to form asecond rigid frame, which, as a whole, is actuated by a spring, andhence said parallel supports on which the pad or waste is directlymounted have no pivotal action independent of each other, and the sameis true of the two arms on which they are mounted, whereas in myapparatus the pad is pivoted at its ends, or, in other words, isdirectly con nected at its two ends to parallel supports, which areseparately pivoted upon arms which are independently resilient, thus providin g for a complete self-adjusting capacity of exceeding delicacy,the importance of which will be apparent in view of the fact that in mylubricator the pad is supported by its two ends only and is held againstthe entire under side of the journal by springs, and that all forceexerted by the springs beyond what is necessary to bear the weight ofthe pad, its pendent wicks, and the oil therein is exerted as tensilestrain on the wick, and as this should be reduced to a minimum, so asnot to impair its oil-lifting capacity, as well as to avoid undue Wear,the complete and self-adjusting capacity of the wick with relation tothe journal is a matter of material consequence, and this is amplyprovided for by me in the side arms, which are independently resilient,and in the immediate parallel pad-supports, which are separately pivotedto their respective spring-arms.

To more particularly describe my invention, I willjrefer to theaccompanying drawings, in which Figures 1 and 2 illustrate one of myimproved lubricators in side and top views. Fig. 3 illustrates the sameas when applied to an axle-box, the latter being shown in longitudinalvertical section and containing an axlejournal. Fig. 4, in side and topviews, illustrates the metallic portion of the lubricator without thepad and wicks and detached from the axle-box. Fig. 5, in side and topviews, illustrates the metallic portion of my lubricat-or constructed inone of its simplest form s.

Referring to Figs. 1 to 3, inclusive, it is to be understood that thepad A and the pendent wicks B, having their upper ends projectingthrough the pad, are as before devised by me, and said pad is alsosuspended beneath the axle-journal C and maintained in light contacttherewith, as with my original lubricators.

The pad-supporting bracket D embodies the main novel features of myimprovements; but its combination with the pad constitutes one novelfeature, in that the latter is not only suspended between appropriateportions of said structure, but it is also pivoted and so suspended attwo centrally-opposite points that the pad is always free to evenlyadjust itself to the longitudinal surface of the journal. As shown inFigs. 1 to 4, inclusive, the pad-bracket D has two curved springarms, a,side by side, and separated by a space greater than the diameter of theaxle-journal with which it is to be used. The free ends of each of thesearms occupy sockets b, which are pivoted to a small block, 0,transversely bored to receive a wire, d, embraced by a folded strip, e,of thin sheet metal, over which an overlapped portion of one end of thepad A is secured, as clearly indicated. These arms a, at their fixedends, are provided with a spring-coil, and are adapted to be secured tothe front side of .a journal-box, E, below the usual covered openingtherein, by which access to its interior is afforded, and thisparticular adaptation may be widely varied as to construction withoutdeparture from my invention, it being only essential that said armsshould constitute resilient or yielding portions of a pad-supportingbracket mounted at and upon said front end of the box, and projectinginwardly, so as to hold the pad in contact with the journal-as, forinstance, said arms at their fixed ends are to be sometimes providedwith screw-threads and nuts to enable them to be properly mounted on theend of the journal-box by means of holes therein, and such arrangementembodies certain valuable portions of my invention, although I prefer tohave the arms connected together at their fixed ends to enable them tobe mounted by the use of one hole in the axle-box, or even without anysuch hole at all, as will be hereinafter. explained. In Figs. 1, 2, 3,and 4 I show a base-plate, f, to which the two arms are firmly secured,and said plate has a hole therein for the reception of a boltforsecuring it in place.

Instead of a bolt, a strong spring-hook will serve as a reliableretaining device. As inposition, and with such boxes as have thewell-known spring-lids the latter will also serve to hold the hooksecurely in place, and for enabling the lids to be tightly closed theedge of the box should be slightly recessed or grooved to receive thespring.

In Fig. 5 I show a pad-supporting bracket, D, in a simple andinexpensive form. In this instance a single piece of suitable wire isbent so as to afford a base at f, which is an equivalent of the plate f,and it has a broad full bearing for contact with the box-surface onwhich it is to be mounted, and the wire is also bent so as to afford asuitable eye or hole for the reception ofa securing-bolt; or, in-'providing for the desired pivotal connection of the pad with said arms.This pad-supporting bracket can be produced at such comparatively lowcost as will fully. warrant its use on'freight and coal cars in view ofthe perfect and economical lubrication afforded in the use of the padand wicks. 7

It will be readily obvious that, while two yielding or spring arms areessential at the points of connection ofthe bracket with the pad, it isa matter of little consequence for said arms to maintain their separatecharacter all the waybetween the pad and the front end of the box, solong as each is independently capable of yielding, and hence I obtaingood results when the arms are separated to afiord sufficient length toproperly hold the suspended pad, and are merged together into or securedto one spring-arm, extended to the front end of the axle-box and adaptedto be secured thereto, as indicated in dotted lines in the top view ofFig. 5.

It will be seen that the pad and the wicks, even when charged with oil,will have so little weight that they will require but little strength inthe spring-arms for supporting them, and that said arms may be readilybent and adjusted by hand for varying the location of the pad withreference to the journal, and also forv securing the desirable degree ofpressure between the end of the pad and journal, and, still further,that the lubricators maybe readily applied and removed, and also, stillfurther, that the pivoting of the pad to the arms, as'shown, enables thepad at front and rear to self-adjust itself to the longitudinal sur== Yface of the journal, and to thereby maintain uniform relationstherewith; and it is to be understood that I deem this novel feature tobe of value regardless of the form and arrangement of the sidesupporting-arms.

Having thus described my invention, 1 claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patent 1. In a car-axle lubricator, the combination of thesuspended lubricating-pad, the wicks pendent therefrom, and a pair ofindependently-resilient side supports, to which the ends of said pad arecentrally pivoted, said pad being suspended between said supports,substantially as described.

2. The combination, substantially as hereinbefore described, of abracket having two independently-resilient arms and adapted to bemounted upon the front end of a car-axle j ournal-box and to projectinwardly therefrom, and a lubricating-pad which is suspended betweensaid arms and provided with pendent wicks, and is pivotally connected atits end to said two arms for maintaining it in position for contact withan axle-journal.

3. The combination, substantially as hereinbefore described, of acar-axle box, a suspended lubricating pad having pendent wicks, and apad-supporting bracket which is mounted upon and extends inwardly fromthe front end of said box, and which at its inner end has two arms, uponand between which said pad is suspended and to which the ends of the padare separately pivoted.

THEODORE SAUNDERS.

\Vitnesses:

GEORGE B. BENJAMIN, J r., HENRY O RYDER.

